This invention relates generally to manicuring devices, and more particularly to portable battery powered manicuring devices wherein the manicuring implement is reciprocated by means of an electrical motor and by the improved drive means.
The majority of prior art electrical manicuring devices require an alternating current as a power source. Examples of such devices are taught in U.S. Pat. No. 2,880,737 to Tone et al., U.S. Pat. No. 1,831,327 to Surdock, and U.S. Pat. No. 2,239,870 to Ariza. Such devices have a major disadvantage in that they cannot be used in any location where an electrical outlet is not readily available.
Battery powered manicuring devices are also known in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 3,916,921 to Pesola teaches a battery powered solenoid to achieve reciprocation of a nail file. Another battery powered device is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 2,935,972 to Jones et al. Jones et al. teaches an eccentric sleeve affixed to a motor shaft, the eccentric being disposed within an aperture at the lower end of the nail file. Since the surface of the sleeve rubs against the sides of the aperture to achieve reciprocation, it may be appreciated that there will be substantial power losses due to friction. In addition, the sides of the aperture and the sleeve surface will easily become worn, rendering the Jones et al. device ineffective.
Various other drive means have been used in prior art devices, each of which having one or more of the following serious disadvantages: a large number of moving parts, lack of compactness, power losses due to friction, low reliability, and expensive in price.
Devices utilizing gear-type drives are taught in U.S. Pat. No. 2,880,737 to Tone et al., U.S. Pat. No. 1,742,862 to Jones, and U.S. Pat. No. 1,831,327 to Surdock. These and other devices using gear drives require a large number of moving parts which parts will tend to wear out, and will lose a substantial amount of power due to friction.
Examples of devices using solenoid-type drives may be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,504,795 to Biasi and 3,916,921 to Pesola. Such devices generally require a source of alternating current, are complex, expensive and unreliable.
Another drive means found in the prior art uses an eccentric. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,239,870 to Ariza, two pivotal means must be provided, one attached to the eccentric and the other to a manicuring implement. It may be appreciated that there will be substantial friction and thus degradation of parts at these pivotal points.
Yet another drive means is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 1,047,889 to Gooch. In Gooch, a cylinder has a pin member which travels in the cam groove of a plunger. As the cylinder rotates, the plunger reciprocates thereby imparting a rocking movement to an angle lever and reciprocating a file. The Gooch device has a large number of moving parts, some of which will tend to degrade due to the existence of three high friction pivot points.
Many prior art devices use a reciprocating file as a manicuring implement, such file having all of its cutting edges being substantially parallel. Use of such files on delicate surfaces such as finger nails, often results in the chipping or splitting of nails since such files are generally suitable only for unidirectional applications. Thus, it is desirable to provide a reciprocating manicuring implement suitable for bidirectional use.
Several prior art devices overcome the bidirectional file problem by using a round manicuring implement which rotates in a unidirectional, circular motion. However, such devices may be awkward for people who have become accustomed to using elongated manicuring files, resulting in nonuniform manicuring of the nails.
The disadvantages of the prior art, however, are overcome by the present invention and improved apparatus are provided for a battery powered, portable manicuring device.